Home > Headlines

By Meloyde Blancett-Scott,
Deputy Director, Marketing & Communications
OK Department of Commerce

Oklahoma Department of Commerce Forms Partnership to
Boost Rural Economies

Oklahoma City, OK - To counter the effects of declining populations and spotty economic growth in Oklahoma’s rural areas, the Oklahoma Department of Commerce has marshaled the energy of high-level statewide partners who together will initiate the first steps of a new, multi-faceted rural economic development program.

While each organization has an economic development element to their operations, this marks the first time they have been brought together as a team to address the state’s rural economic future.

Led by the Commerce Department, these initial partners include the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, the State Department of CareerTech, Rural Enterprises, Inc. (REI), and the Oklahoma Association of Regional Councils (OARC) and other key groups from across the state. These partners have agreed to provide office space and support for four new rural economic development specialists that will be hired in the next 30 days and then housed in various parts of the state as part of the first phase of a broad effort to revitalize rural areas.
Ultimately, there will be 30 or more stakeholders partnering to assist in this initiative.

Moreover, the Commerce Department, through workforce development efforts, is launching an extensive research process which will, for the first time, pull together information on each section of the state’s industry sectors, workforce needs, and marketable assets. Workforce development is considered a key component of the economic health and growth of rural Oklahoma.

“The common thread of the new economic frontier is interdependence as opposed to independence – whether it is an agency of the state government, local chambers of commerce, or communities within a region," said Kathy Taylor, Secretary of Commerce and Tourism. “We must pull together and work as a team, bringing all our resources to bear.”

These activities are part of HB 2288, which was authored by Sen. Jay Paul Gumm, Durant, and Rep. Dale Turner, Holdenville, and signed into law in June calling for the creation of a rural economic development plan and structure. “These two lawmakers are to be commended for their vision in creating this bill,” said Taylor. “Rural Oklahoma needs a strategic focus and this is a start in providing us with the resources to begin to address it.”

In the southwest area of the state, the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education will establish an office for the rural initiative at Cameron University in Lawton. In the northwest part of the state, OARC is providing an office location at the Grand Gateway Economic Development Association in Big Cabin. In the southeast, REI is making available an office at their Durant headquarters. The state’s northwest office will be located inside the High Plains Career Tech Center in Woodward.

According to Dr. Paul Risser, Chancellor of the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education, this partnership represents a level of involvement that extends way beyond just the establishment of the office locations. “This effort represents an important advance in the way we approach rural economic development,” Dr. Risser said. “It provides a channel for us to proactively concentrate state and non-profit resources in ways that will specifically support rural economic development initiatives.”

Dr. Phil Berkenbile, state director for the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education, shared Dr. Risser’s outlook for the partnership. “Each organization brings a critically important economic development component to the table, and now we have the opportunity to provide a unified approach to advancing initiatives that can contribute to sustainable economic growth in rural Oklahoma.”

Resumes are now being accepted for the four rural economic development positions that were created as a result of this program initiative. People interested in applying can learn more by visiting the Department of Commerce Web site at http://www.odoc.state.ok.us.

The Oklahoma Department of Commerce is the primary economic and workforce development arm of the state. The agency recruits new businesses to the state, develops economic incentives, assists existing business growth, manages programs that develop the future workforce, facilitates international trade and export assistance, and provides funding to Oklahoma rural communities for programs and activities aimed as sustainability and economic growth. It also manages funds and programs for the State Energy Office function of the U.S. Department of Energy.